Hunting Art Prize

15 boxes. This material has been catalogued. Please search the archive catalogue for details. (Ref HAP)

The archive contains material relating to the Hunting Art Prizes (HAP) which ran from 1981 to 2005. It includes minutes and correspondence relating to the planning and organization of the annual competitions; original publicity material, including exhibition catalogues; coloured images of the winning entries; and information relating to the winning artists and press-cuttings.

The Hunting Art Prizes were initiated in 1981 by Clive Hunting, chairman of the Hunting Group. During the first few years of their existence, entrance was restricted to artists exhibiting under the Federation of British Artists, which then included seven old-established exhibiting societies. In 1986 it was opened to all comers. Each year, a panel of judges was assembled to select works for exhibition and to identify prize winners. In 1981 the competition had a total purse of £15,000. By 2004, this figure had doubled.

Between 1987 and 1999 an edited version of the exhibition was also shown annually at different Galleries outside of London and in later years, The HAP raised funds for various nominated charities.

Prize winners have included, for example, Richard Eurich (1903-1992); Hans Schwarz (1922-2003); Daphne Todd (1947-); Tom Philips (1937-); and Jennifer MacRae (1959-). Judges have included Tom Coates; Angela Flowers; Sir Norman Reid; and Brian Sewell.